Pediatric Rotation Program FAQ

You will be working in established Jamaican Ministry of Health clinics in the North East Region of Jamaica, which is located in the parish of St. Mary. Towns where clinics are held are Port Maria, Port Antonio and Annotto Bay.

You will be seeing patients aged birth to 13 years who are referred from the local General Practitioners. Diagnoses will likely include asthma, eczema, HIV, sickle cell disease, malnutrition, as well as some diagnostic dilemmas.

Yes, you will be working with the 2 pediatricians in the region- Dr Iyer Ramos and Dr Melissa Fisher. They will either be in clinic seeing patients alongside you, or will be immediately available by phone. You will also be working directly with the local General Practitioners who may consult with you on their patients.

Our goal is to have a 3rd year pediatric or med-peds resident and a pediatric faculty level physician working there each month of the year. We will evaluate other practitioners such as nurse practitioners or other Licensed Independent Practitioners on an individual basis. We cannot take any medical students or non- licensed practitioners at this time.

The Ministry of Health in Jamaica requires your current license as well as a few other forms and a letter of recommendation. We will cover the cost of the license and assist you with the required paperwork.

You are responsible for the cost of your flight to Montego Bay, Sangster Airport (a requirement) as well as the cost of travel insurance (medical evacuation coverage), lunch costs and laundry service (available at the resort)

We asking that our doctors round on the pediatric inpatients in the hospitals adjacent to the clinic of the day with the General Practitioners to provide some assistance in their management or diagnosis as needed. You will not be responsible for admitting patients yourself.

While donations are appreciated, it is a complicated process to import them. To better serve the medical system in Jamaica, we are working with the Ministry of Health to be able to write prescriptions that can be filled at the local pharmacies. Jamaica has Universal Healthcare, but the system needs to be aware of what the people need- it is very difficult to track medications donated and handed out. We will provide a listing of medications available and details on prescribing.

That depends on the clinic we are working in and whether or not the equipment is functional. We will provide a listing of what testing is available at each site, but typically basic lab tests and plain film x rays are available close by.

You will have access to the Hardin Library of Medical Sciences which has a very extensive collection of journals and access to most medical search engines. If there are medical questions that the local physicians cannot answer, Dr McConkey will be available and will assist in finding answers to questions.

You will be staying at the Couples Resort, Couples Tower Isle (www.couples.com) all inclusive resort. You will be staying in an air conditioned Villa. The Villa consists of a building with two separate bedrooms (separate entrances), and two separate bathrooms. You will share the kitchen and living room (flat screen TV provided) area if there is an additional pediatric doctor working. Each bedroom has a TV! We try to schedule two pediatric doctors per month for 30 days. We may only have one working per month. There is also wifi provided in the Villa.

Couples Tower Isle resort is an Adult only resort, no children allowed. If you want to bring a spouse or significant other, you will need to notify Diane Pollard, in advance since the resort does require manifest information. Diane will follow up with required information and payment. THE COST WILL BE $200.00 PER DAY FOR YOUR GUEST.

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Testimonials

You are simply amazing – the people of Jamaica cannot thank you enough for your service. We at NERHA are very grateful..

Gloria Fenton RoseDirector of Human Resource and Industrial Relations

Thanks again for the equipment. They have been pressed into service; are being used heavily and have made a significant dent in our wait time. We have shortened the wait time and have used the portable unit to transport critical patients to Kingston and with reliable records of the vitals. Jim a special thanks to you and to ALL the staff of WelchAllyn.
Diane there are not enough words to express the gratitude of my patients, my staff and myself. Again thank you.

Dr. Maurice SloleySenior Medical Officer (Acting)

The equipment is wonderful and the EKG machine is state of the art. The residents are thrilled, one of them remarked, “We don’t have to use our cellphone flashlights anymore to put in IV lines!

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About the Foundation

Issa Trust Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation
The mission of the Foundation is to provide a system of prevention, health promotion and education, community health improvement and other services to promote well-being and development for the people of Jamaica.